Pokemon White Version

 DS
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 753 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 535 out of 753
  2. Mixed: 123 out of 753
  3. Negative: 95 out of 753
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  1. Rolento
    Nov 25, 2012
    6
    I tried my hardest to not be a purist and yes, I enjoyed the game and developed affection for six pixellated representations of data like the loser I am. But I really, really can't help but hear the screams of "INNOVATION" that come from the business meetings of whoever's in charge of making these games. It's not a problem becuase "changes suck", and not even "THESE changes suck". It'sI tried my hardest to not be a purist and yes, I enjoyed the game and developed affection for six pixellated representations of data like the loser I am. But I really, really can't help but hear the screams of "INNOVATION" that come from the business meetings of whoever's in charge of making these games. It's not a problem becuase "changes suck", and not even "THESE changes suck". It's just that they are all so unnecessary. Pokémon is already very, very commercial, and already has this terrible tendency to make a very good feature and then remove it in the next installment (which I guess is a good excuse to go and replay the older titles), and along with that with each generation the Pokémon designs get worse and worse to the point that the fan-made ones are starting to look like popsicles in a desert to me, while the official one start to look... like popsicles. Literally. Before you rant about this last complaint, let me get this straight: Pokémon has always had at least some bad designs, since Generation I, all I mean is that the percentage of badly thought Pokémon in each new generation is CONSTANTLY INCREASING. So with all these "periodic flaws", I feel like this title is not only natural culmination of those, but deals the final blow with unimpressive changes. The graphics are better and without having switched to some 3D gimmick, however, and I'd also like to stress that with this new wave of Pokémon the metagame is refreshed, and that's never a bad thing. Changing the mechanics of sleep was an interesting choice, for instance.… Expand
  2. Focaccia
    Apr 28, 2017
    6
    In my opinion, the 5th gen is the worst pokemon gen, simply because the game isn't as fun as the other games. That does't mean it's a bad game, it's just that this game simply lacks originality, and at the time, pokemon was starting to get repetitive (until the 7th gen).
  3. loungegecko
    Mar 10, 2012
    6
    Get this one instead of Black version. The bonus feature is a forest that works seasonally, while the bonus feature in Black is a city tht works depending on how fast you beat the game. If you're ike me, you spend a lot of time really building a team and beat Pokemon games pretty slowly, and Black loses the bonus feature almost entirely if you're like that. Still can only give it a 6. ReadGet this one instead of Black version. The bonus feature is a forest that works seasonally, while the bonus feature in Black is a city tht works depending on how fast you beat the game. If you're ike me, you spend a lot of time really building a team and beat Pokemon games pretty slowly, and Black loses the bonus feature almost entirely if you're like that. Still can only give it a 6. Read my review for Black version for all of the details on that.… Expand
  4. muah_ha_ha
    Jun 4, 2014
    6
    Pokemon White is a big disappointment in comparison to the other Pokemon games in the series. The graphics look messy and are unfriendly. The Pokemon look fake and basically almost every aspect of the game looks rushed. The good thing about this game is the storyline which is very deep and the reason I enjoyed playing this. If you're a hardcore Pokemon fan you cannot skip this game,Pokemon White is a big disappointment in comparison to the other Pokemon games in the series. The graphics look messy and are unfriendly. The Pokemon look fake and basically almost every aspect of the game looks rushed. The good thing about this game is the storyline which is very deep and the reason I enjoyed playing this. If you're a hardcore Pokemon fan you cannot skip this game, especially if you want to transfer you old Pokemon from previous generations to the much better X & Y versions.… Expand
  5. ashketchum
    Nov 24, 2017
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The 5th gen of Pokemon attempted to soft-reboot the franchise, both in the games and the anime. In Pokemon White, you can only catch Pokemon originating in the Unova region. This forces you to build new teams and stategies, which is a pro, espescially for returning players. However, the graphics look awkwardly mixed between 2D and 3D. Many of the areas in Unova lack a distinct atmosphere, unlike in Johto or Sinnoh. White Forest is a memorable area, though, allowing you to catch certain Pokemon not found in Unova otherwise. The story was a mixed bag. It was somewhat more interesting than previous entries, but in the end, it was still a Pokemon story. N could have been an interesting character, but instead, he felt like he was forced in to give these games a more serious overtone; he lacked enough development for me to care for him much. White wasn't bad, just not as good as previous titles in the series for me.… Expand
  6. Jake_
    May 28, 2013
    6
    I Based this score on the fact that this game was nowhere near as good as the other Pokemon Games. The same goes for Black & White 2. I've played every other main Pokemon game, and this comes nowhere near. This does not mean to say I didn't enjoy the game, but it was just a little disappointing.
  7. Glitter
    Aug 30, 2013
    7
    An essential reboot of the Pokémon handheld titles, Pokémon Black and Pokémon White are not so innovative as they might aspire to be. The same mechanics are utilized, and little to nothing new is brought to the table. Attempting to attract attention of leading the edge in modernization, by adding over a 150 new species to the Pokémon roster, it fails by doing little more than this. TripleAn essential reboot of the Pokémon handheld titles, Pokémon Black and Pokémon White are not so innovative as they might aspire to be. The same mechanics are utilized, and little to nothing new is brought to the table. Attempting to attract attention of leading the edge in modernization, by adding over a 150 new species to the Pokémon roster, it fails by doing little more than this. Triple battles and rotation battles, while a nice addition, are barely featured and almost a backdoor surprise feature that you don't unearth unless you go looking for them. The Unova region is heavily grotesque in that it fails in its forced marriage of nature and urbanization. Within 30 seconds you are able to travel from a forest, to a bridge, to a metropolis, to a desert. The inspiration of New York City bares little resemblance outside of the trivial skyscrapers and harbors in Castelia City. Perhaps the only redeeming and general progression in the Pokémon series is the beautifully crafted soundtrack. However, outside of this there is little if anything new to the series.… Expand
  8. POK95
    Mar 22, 2018
    7
    I've been playing this games recently. For me, one of the best Pokémon games, story is great and lovely, the second best for me (it was the best until Sun and Moon). The bad thing is the easy it is, bad designs and simple region. But it has a great postgame and routes, i love this game and its one of the best of the pixel era, the thing was that it was just the same as always, just GameI've been playing this games recently. For me, one of the best Pokémon games, story is great and lovely, the second best for me (it was the best until Sun and Moon). The bad thing is the easy it is, bad designs and simple region. But it has a great postgame and routes, i love this game and its one of the best of the pixel era, the thing was that it was just the same as always, just Game Freak being afraid to change anything.… Expand
  9. Captain_Faramir
    Apr 1, 2017
    7
    7.8 - Definitely not my favourite Gen, but regardless, still pokemon and well-done. One of the favourite parts in this one is the final boss battle where it's back-to-back boss battle which can be challenging.
  10. NineteenNinetyF
    May 8, 2011
    6
    OK game, not much has changed, better graphics, cool new pokemon. Great game, although once you complete the game and start over, it's quite boring. It's not a game you can play over and over and over. I would like to see something different in the pokemon games, such as "customizing your character", "choosing your own path" instead of following the same routine like in all the otherOK game, not much has changed, better graphics, cool new pokemon. Great game, although once you complete the game and start over, it's quite boring. It's not a game you can play over and over and over. I would like to see something different in the pokemon games, such as "customizing your character", "choosing your own path" instead of following the same routine like in all the other games.
    I would recommend this game to someone.

    Overall great game. I'd just like to see something different.    … Expand
  11. mitchall23
    Jul 18, 2012
    5
    Dear pokemon creaters if I could speak to one. Take pokemon and make it a LEGIT RPG! Its that easy and kids will even love it. Make a more unique leveling up system, make each pokemon capable of being unique. People who play pokemon like there pokemon and want them to be around for a long time instead of starting all over each time we turn a new game on. Go to console, create a newDear pokemon creaters if I could speak to one. Take pokemon and make it a LEGIT RPG! Its that easy and kids will even love it. Make a more unique leveling up system, make each pokemon capable of being unique. People who play pokemon like there pokemon and want them to be around for a long time instead of starting all over each time we turn a new game on. Go to console, create a new universe, and become pairable with the haindheld scene. It would blow up and that's what y'all want right, to make money?… Expand
  12. Kazek7
    Aug 16, 2015
    6
    Truly, The worst duo of the franchise. Where the prior games had challenge, Black and White has none. The tutorial is far too long, Gym's far too easy, and the story incredibly dull. With the addition of Audino, Grinding is far too easy and removes any sense of accomplishment when you actually beat anything that could be considered "Challenging". Black and White also lacks any endgameTruly, The worst duo of the franchise. Where the prior games had challenge, Black and White has none. The tutorial is far too long, Gym's far too easy, and the story incredibly dull. With the addition of Audino, Grinding is far too easy and removes any sense of accomplishment when you actually beat anything that could be considered "Challenging". Black and White also lacks any endgame content worth your time after the Elite four, So you end up with a plastic brick with a logo. If you encounter Pokemon Black/White in a store - Avoid it and buy Black/White 2. or you know.. Maybe the Gen 6 games. It's Bloody 2015.… Expand
  13. okayokay
    Oct 10, 2018
    6
    rrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaadddddddddddiiiiiiiiiiicccccccccccaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllll
  14. rubin
    Apr 28, 2012
    6
    Why GameFreak, why? Why, after the excellent HG/SS versions, you had to come out with this... thing? The best bet I have is that the team that worked on this abomination is NOT the same that worked on HG and SS. But anyway. The entire franchise got so dumbed down with Black and White it's not even funny. Poison not working outside of battle? Region being linear as crap? Gym leaders onlyWhy GameFreak, why? Why, after the excellent HG/SS versions, you had to come out with this... thing? The best bet I have is that the team that worked on this abomination is NOT the same that worked on HG and SS. But anyway. The entire franchise got so dumbed down with Black and White it's not even funny. Poison not working outside of battle? Region being linear as crap? Gym leaders only ever having 3 Pokemon max? Audinos and Lucky Egg making the game lose ANY traces of challenge it ever had? And that's only scratching the top of a mountain of problems this game has. Truth to be told, the game has some improvements. Mostly minor, and/or completely irrelevant to the franchise as a whole (like a plot) but there are still there. Still, the game left me with a really bad aftertaste (esp. with what they did to the multiplayer...) and that pushed me, a lifelong fan of the franchise, to rate this game with such an average score.… Expand
  15. SilverUchiha
    Jun 25, 2013
    5
    I'm going to come off as a "Gen-Oner" because what I'm going to say is going to sound like me just hating on the new and appreciating the old. that said, Generation 5 Pokemon, to me, lost a lot of small things that made the series great and left me with a less than fun experience. Pokemon White is the first Pokemon game where I stopped playing partway through and haven't picked it up sinceI'm going to come off as a "Gen-Oner" because what I'm going to say is going to sound like me just hating on the new and appreciating the old. that said, Generation 5 Pokemon, to me, lost a lot of small things that made the series great and left me with a less than fun experience. Pokemon White is the first Pokemon game where I stopped playing partway through and haven't picked it up since then. There are plenty of reasons why and because this is a review, I guess I'll just lay them out here.
    First, the franchise no longer has any teeth to it. The once terrifying moment of having a poisoned Pokemon and nothing to heal them with has lost all tension because poison status no longer hurts outside of battle. And even if it did, it feels like there is a healer on every route. There's no threat or challenge to exploring the world, which is the main reason I want to explore. To find dangerous situations and create tension by getting lost or cornered. And Pokemon has been a game franchise that, in my opinion, was all about exploration of big worlds. Generation IV (Diamond and Pearl) was perfect because the environments were bigger, had more variety, and were things you actually could get kind of lost in. Here, I never really felt like there was much variety and that I had my hand held the entire time I was going through it.
    The story is also a load of piss on my bread. The idea that the bad guys are like Pokemon PETA is a fun concept that I wish had played out better (read spoilers to see how things actually turn out... and it is kind of dumb). PETA is a terrible organization and it would have been cool to see that shown here to some degree, but it was sort of a referential nod towards those maniacs and not really more than that. So, much like Magma, Aqua, Galactic, and the rest, Team Plasma fails to live up the reputation of Team Rocket which actually killed a Pokemon, cloned a legendary Pokemon that nearly killed everyone, and forcibly evolved a Magikarp into a more enraged Gyarados. It's like you aren't even trying with this GameFreak. Next thing you'll do is make a referential character to Michael Vick who isn't really anything like Michael Vick at all beyond a mere reference when you could do so much more with that too.
    Gameplay wise, it's really more of the same. While that's normally not bad, here it seems old hat. It's a copy-paste of generation IV with a few new moves and triple battles (which I feel don't add to this game as much as I wish they did). I'm not asking for a major change in how things work, but more than a few tweaks should be done to justify the makings of a new generation. Because I hardly see any real changes here from the last one.
    On top of that, the one thing I used to go to Pokemon for (exploration) was further knee-capped by the game constantly wanting to shove a big-ol story down my throat. I get that you guys want to give us more narrative and story to these games as a flimsy justification for their existence. But I always found it more fun when the story was minimalisitic and you just learned about the world through exploration (the Lab on Cinnabar Island being the BEST example of this). But when I enter a town, the last thing I want is to not play for ten minutes while characters I don't care about spend forever explaining the game's tediously pointless plot to me. I just want to hunt animals and fight them to be the best trainer in the world. I don't have time to fight some green-haired and his stupid friends.
    To me, Generation V is a huge let down. I see lots of good ideas, especially with the Pokemon Dream World online situation they have going on. But the core game itself doesn't feel like the Pokemon I've loved for the past four generations. It has bits and pieces that seem familiar, but it has so much extra fluff and flab that the game I love is only a small fraction of what remains. So unless Generation VI can somehow reinvigorate the same level of excitement Generation IV did, then I'll just say this is where my Pokemon following ends... until Nintendo grows the balls to finally make a Pokemon MMO that we all want.    … Expand
  16. elolugo
    Nov 18, 2019
    6
    Pretty meh... the pokemons designs feel uninspired and the plot is pretty stupid
  17. IrishChai
    Aug 7, 2011
    7
    This is actually my first experience with Pokemon after my nephew coerced me in to the purchase to play with him. It's an interesting RPG with a depth I didn't expect from the long-running Pokemon series. It often draws me back in to finding pokemon that I haven't captured yet, and the story is interesting enough to where I've wanted to complete it to see how things come together. TheThis is actually my first experience with Pokemon after my nephew coerced me in to the purchase to play with him. It's an interesting RPG with a depth I didn't expect from the long-running Pokemon series. It often draws me back in to finding pokemon that I haven't captured yet, and the story is interesting enough to where I've wanted to complete it to see how things come together. The problem is I've reached an area about halfway through after obtaining 4 badges and dozens of pokemon where the general combat and exploration is getting pretty monotonous. This might just be a game I never completely finish, but even only playing it halfway through, it was worth the purchase for me to enjoy trading with the nephew and finally seeing what the games are like for myself.… Expand
  18. evelio28
    Aug 8, 2020
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. -Tiene personajes decentes

    -La mejor Mecanica en La franquicia

    -El mejor soundtrack que he visto en un Videojuego JRPG.

    Todo esto es Positivo, pero el juego envejecio mal, puesto que nunca fue bien aprovechado en cuanto al trato que el dio su Fandom y la Empresa, encima de todo la Historia es simple y solo se Sostiene con sus Misterios que son muy Regulares (Aunque siguen siendo Arquetipicos)    … Expand
  19. Speedie
    Oct 14, 2021
    7
    Story is a main focus for this game. Pokemon had been adding more and more story to their games up to the release of Pokemon White Version and this game delivered one of the best stories yet. It challenges many things that you think about the Pokemon world and treats you more like a true hero than a kid playing a video game. Almost all of the new content to this game is memorable andStory is a main focus for this game. Pokemon had been adding more and more story to their games up to the release of Pokemon White Version and this game delivered one of the best stories yet. It challenges many things that you think about the Pokemon world and treats you more like a true hero than a kid playing a video game. Almost all of the new content to this game is memorable and fantastic, especially the season changing feature, where the seasons in game will change every few weeks. Pokemon White Version also had the cleanest graphics and art out of all of the 2D Pokemon games to compliment its variety of music, moods, and events.

    The reason this game falls a bit short is mostly its ambitiousness not quite paying off. The quick connection feature is something you rarely use, that Game Freak seems to have put a lot of time into. It seems like they wanted to expand into an online oriented game before moving the series to 3DS, when they should have waited for their next main series game instead. The "triple battles" was something I was so excited for when the game first came out, but I'm not sure I ever even used it.

    Most of what Game Freak did for this game, was a massive leap for the series, but they tried to do too much, too fast. The game is definitely an exciting and engaging one, but too many features were a let down.    … Expand
  20. jiorl
    Jan 23, 2020
    6
    I felt that this game was lacking something as soon as i created my character. It just wasn't impressive to me. The pokemon just looked really average and un-outstanding, and this is probably a polarising opinion, but i didn't like the new visuals of this game compared to previous generations. But it still is a pokemon game, and it still has good qualities about it which makes it a gameI felt that this game was lacking something as soon as i created my character. It just wasn't impressive to me. The pokemon just looked really average and un-outstanding, and this is probably a polarising opinion, but i didn't like the new visuals of this game compared to previous generations. But it still is a pokemon game, and it still has good qualities about it which makes it a game worth playing . Personally i prefer pokemon platnium and the games before.… Expand
  21. Arnoldgore666
    Mar 26, 2020
    7
    Historia interesante pero los lideres de gimnasio son un poco faciles, podria estar mejor
  22. Miotke
    Jul 9, 2020
    5
    5/10 ᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠ
  23. Teaman
    Jun 23, 2020
    7
    Pokemon games have always been too slow for me. The game is enjoyable though.
  24. Hellgates666
    Jun 25, 2020
    6
    Gen 5 of pokemon provides another fun and entertaining entry to the series; but thats all it is. While the previous entries to the generation felt innovative, exciting, and fresh, gen 5 felt like more of the same, without the heart of the previous entries. Don't get me wrong; it's still an incredibly fun game, and any pokemon fan would love this generation. The new pokemon look great, andGen 5 of pokemon provides another fun and entertaining entry to the series; but thats all it is. While the previous entries to the generation felt innovative, exciting, and fresh, gen 5 felt like more of the same, without the heart of the previous entries. Don't get me wrong; it's still an incredibly fun game, and any pokemon fan would love this generation. The new pokemon look great, and the cities do as well. It just doesn't live up to the quality of it's predecessors, and I personally found myself a little bored pretty quickly. Still, this game should be played by pokemon fans.… Expand
  25. FelipeGarou
    Jul 21, 2020
    7
    Um bom jogo,boa história, personagens muito legais, porém a dex é muito capada,mas é um jogo muito bom.
  26. LordJazbin
    Apr 19, 2021
    6
    Story is bad, but not as bad as before, Pokémon designs are horrible, more inspired by Kanto than ever and most of them evolve at high levels so you won't be able to see their final form in the maingame this time around, maingame is short and difficulty is a joke... But... The game is pretty fun to play and it improved a lot all of the flaws Diamond and Pearl or Platinum had. It reallyStory is bad, but not as bad as before, Pokémon designs are horrible, more inspired by Kanto than ever and most of them evolve at high levels so you won't be able to see their final form in the maingame this time around, maingame is short and difficulty is a joke... But... The game is pretty fun to play and it improved a lot all of the flaws Diamond and Pearl or Platinum had. It really feels like a DS game, not like those. Also the music is as always very good.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best DS Game of 2011
2
#2 Most Discussed DS Game of 2011
5
#5 Most Shared DS Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 56 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 56 out of 56
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 56
  3. Negative: 0 out of 56
  1. Universo Nintendo
    Jun 5, 2011
    92
    Learning from the past without ever taking his eyes off the present, this is the pinnacle of the series to date and proof that sometimes you don't need a revolution to give new life to a franchise.
    Read full review
  2. N-Europe
    Apr 7, 2011
    90
    One of the best generations of Pokemon titles to date, Black & White take almost all of the best elements from the series and then carefully craft it into something truly wonderful; recreating that same sense of adventure from the very first titles.
    Read full review
  3. Multiplayer.it
    Mar 31, 2011
    90
    Almost a franchise reboot, Pokémon Black & White is your ultimate Pokémon experience. Overall better than previous generations by any means, this new installment manages to inspire on veteran players a sense of wonder and awe gone missing years ago. The new adventure flows better and is much more intriguing and challenging but of course you are not going to change your mind if you hate Pikachu and friends.
    Read full review
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